{"id":73451,"date":"2025-04-13T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2025-04-13T13:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=73451"},"modified":"2025-09-20T14:32:55","modified_gmt":"2025-09-20T18:32:55","slug":"penn-state-star-adds-intrigue-to-top-of-nfl-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/04\/13\/penn-state-star-adds-intrigue-to-top-of-nfl-draft\/","title":{"rendered":"Penn State Star Adds Intrigue to Top of NFL Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

Abdul Carter<\/a> did not work out at the NFL Draft Combine or at Penn State\u2019s Pro Day.\u00a0 However, he is still one of the top prospects to leave the college game this season.\u00a0 After meeting with teams at the top of the draft, he is set to embark on the next chapter.\u00a0 With Carter’s pure talent and production at multiple positions in college, the Penn State star adds intrigue to the top of the NFL Draft.\u00a0 Additionally, a recent post on social media has him back in the spotlight.<\/p>\n

Earning the Hype<\/h2>\n

Penn State had a very successful season in 2024, progressing all the way to the College Football Playoffs (CFP) semifinals.\u00a0 Defensive star Abdul Carter was a big reason for that success.\u00a0 Carter\u2019s talent is undeniable.\u00a0 His statistics at Penn State put him in the upper echelon of all-time Penn State defenders.\u00a0 He won awards for his efforts and started his own campaign for the Heisman (which he didn\u2019t win).\u00a0 Consequently, Carter has earned the hype.<\/p>\n

The Making of a Top Five Pick<\/h3>\n

A top-five pick in the NFL Draft can make or break a franchise for years to come.\u00a0 That is why those picks are frequently used on quarterbacks.\u00a0 However, Carter has the potential to be one of those franchise-changing stars.<\/p>\n

Carter was a top performer at Penn State from early on.\u00a0 As a freshman in 2022, he became the second Penn State freshman to record at least 10 tackles for loss along with six sacks in a season.\u00a0 The other Nittany Lion to accomplish that feat was Deion Barnes, Carter\u2019s eventual defensive line coach at Penn State.<\/p>\n

In his junior season in 2024, Carter made a big move that paid dividends for Carter, for the Penn State defense, and for his NFL Draft stock.\u00a0 In his first two seasons, Carter played linebacker.\u00a0 And in 2024, under the tutelage of defensive coordinator Tom Allen, Carter moved to defensive end.\u00a0 Overall, he recorded 68 tackles and 12 sacks, with two forced fumbles.\u00a0 Carter also led the nation with 23.5 tackles for loss.<\/p>\n

Following in the St1x C1ty Footsteps<\/h3>\n

Enhancing Carter\u2019s status in entering the NFL Draft process was the legacy of the Penn State defense.\u00a0 He started as a linebacker at Linebacker U.\u00a0 Additionally, there is a long line of prior Nittany Lions who have successfully made the move to the NFL.\u00a0 It is not a reach for teams to envision a Penn State linebacker continuing to succeed at the NFL level.<\/p>\n

Carter was the proud torchbearer of #11<\/a> on the Penn State defense.\u00a0 The number brings prestige and expectations with it.\u00a0 Carter exceeded those expectations on the field. Prior defensive stars that donned the #11 jersey included LaVar Arrington<\/a>, NaVorro Bowman<\/a>, and Micah Parsons<\/a>.\u00a0 Those players went from great careers at Penn State to successful careers in the NFL.\u00a0 Carter has the chance to eclipse all of them, judging by his college statistics and awards.\u00a0 Following his junior season in 2024, Carter was named a unanimous consensus All-American.\u00a0 He was the 15th<\/sup> Penn State player to achieve that distinction, and the first since Saquon Barkley.\u00a0 He was also named the Nagurski-Woodson Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the Smith-Brown Big Ten Defensive Lineman of the Year.<\/p>\n

Overcoming Adversity<\/h3>\n

In addition to raw talent, a player needs to be mentally tough to succeed in football.\u00a0 Carter has proven himself able to do that.\u00a0 Examples occurred in both the beginning and the end of last season.<\/p>\n

Starting in 2024 at a new position as a defensive lineman, it was a bit rocky at first.\u00a0 Carter was charged with penalties early on and struggled to make meaningful impacts in the game.\u00a0 The move from linebacker was questioned.\u00a0 His first sack of the season came in the win against Kent State<\/a>, and in the next contest against Illinois<\/a>,\u00a0Carter produced seven tackles, two sacks, and forced a fumble.\u00a0 From there, Carter accelerated in his production and regained national notoriety.<\/p>\n

In Penn State\u2019s semifinal loss against Notre Dame<\/a>, Carter again showed both his physical and mental toughness.\u00a0 He was struggling with an arm\/shoulder injury.\u00a0 The injury was apparent and impacted his play.\u00a0 Despite that, he still impacted the game.\u00a0 Carter produced five tackles and a sack in the game.\u00a0 However, he was the key focus for the Notre Dame offense.\u00a0 On the national stage, Carter produced and led the defense.\u00a0 He will have to continue fighting through potential injuries, as medical testing at the NFL Draft Combine revealed he was dealing with a stress reaction in his foot.<\/p>\n

An Abundance of Carter Confidence<\/h3>\n

Despite the early season struggles, Carter\u2019s mental fortitude and confidence did not waver.\u00a0 They were also frequently on display throughout the season.\u00a0 Carter believed he was the best player in college football, and openly talked about it.\u00a0 Counter to the traditional Penn State team-first approach, Carter was his own biggest cheerleader.\u00a0 Following a sack in a game against Maryland<\/a>, Carter even struck the Heisman pose.<\/p>\n

Recently, Carter has been meeting with NFL teams that could potentially draft him.\u00a0 The New York Giants were one of those teams. If Carter gets past the Cleveland Browns, who hold the second pick, he is an option for the Giants to select.\u00a0 One of New York\u2019s best-known players was Lawrence Taylor.\u00a0 Taylor was drafted by the Giants as the second overall pick in the 1981 NFL Draft.\u00a0 He went on to become one of the greatest defensive players of all time.<\/p>\n

Following his meeting with the Giants as part of the pre-draft process, Carter posted a picture on his X account.\u00a0 It is a significant one, as it showed Taylor in a Giants uniform, with the quote \u201cOnce a Giant, always a Giant\u201d on the bottom.\u00a0 Carter continues to run toward very lofty expectations, fueled by his performance and stats at Penn State.\u00a0 It is still to be determined where Carter will land in the NFL Draft.\u00a0 However, what is obvious is the Penn State star continues to add intrigue to the top of the NFL Draft.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Main Image: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Abdul Carter did not work out at the NFL Draft Combine or at Penn State\u2019s Pro Day.\u00a0 However, he is still one of the top prospects to leave the college game this season.\u00a0 After meeting with teams at the top of the draft, he is set to embark on the next chapter.\u00a0 With Carter’s pure […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5172,"featured_media":73461,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"1","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1480,35610],"tags":[33530,5153,7983,6272,3440,309,226,34870],"class_list":["post-73451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bigten","category-nfl-draft","category-penn-state-nittany-lions","tag-2025-nfl-draft","tag-all-american","tag-big-ten-football","tag-deion-barnes","tag-penn-state-defense","tag-penn-state-nittany-lions","tag-saquon-barkley","tag-st1x-c1ty"],"modified_by":"Michael Kovacs, ADMIN","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73451","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5172"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73451"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73451\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":73462,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73451\/revisions\/73462"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73461"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73451"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73451"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73451"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}